Bats carry Rebels to rout

OXFORD – Less than the best from Bobby Wahl was more than enough with the Ole Miss offense taking a step forward.
Will Jamison drove in three runs, and Austin Bousfield doubled and tripled as the No. 8 Rebels defeated Rhode Island 8-1 on Friday before an announced crowd of 9,333 in their series opener at Swayze Field.
Game 2 is today at 1 p.m.
Wahl wasn’t as sharp as he was a week ago when he threw 61⁄3 scoreless innings against TCU and was named pitcher of the week in the SEC. On Friday, he walked three and hit a batter in the fist three innings.
“I think he was just over-throwing. Sometimes you get that lead, and I don’t want to say necessarily you let your guard down, but it’s like, ‘How many can I strike out tonight?’ You feel, maybe, too comfortable,” Ole Miss coach Mike Bianco said.
Wahl finished with a career-high six walks in five innings. With their multitude of chances, however, the Rams (0-4) managed just a run and two hits against him.
Offensive outburst
Wahl’s sub-par outing still trumped Rhode Island’s Mike Bradstreet.
It didn’t start well for Bradstreet when Tanner Mathis singled through the left side on his first pitch. From there, it went downhill.
Bradstreet, who lasted just 31⁄3 innings in the season opener at Florida State, gave up five runs on five hits in the first.
The Rebels added two more runs in the second and another in the third.
Bradstreet remained in the game for seven innings, allowing Rhode Island to save most of its bullpen.
parrish.alford@journalinc.com